Tottenham Hotspur vs Watford. Premier League.
White Hart LaneAttendance31,706.
Saturday 8 April 2017 11:30, UK
Harry Kane could return as Tottenham look to maintain their title challenge when they host injury-hit Watford, live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 11.30am on Saturday.
The striker has returned to first-team training ahead of schedule after suffering an ankle injury against Millwall on March 12, and Mauricio Pochettino says he is in contention to feature against the Hornets.
"We'll see tomorrow if he [Kane] can start the game or be on the bench. He's ready, he feels good," said Pochettino.
After staging a late fightback to beat Swansea 3-1 on Wednesday, Spurs have won their last five matches in the Premier League.
While they are still seven points behind leaders Chelsea, defender Jan Vertonghen has not given up on the title.
"Chelsea are looking very strong but we can't stop pushing and dreaming of the league," he said. "They had a big win [2-1 against Manchester City] but they have a couple of difficult games coming up.
"We have to keep winning and hopefully they get a bit stressed."
Watford appear to have taken a big step towards Premier League survival after back-to-back wins against Sunderland and West Brom moved them nine points clear of the relegation zone.
However, they will be without several players for their trip to White Hart Lane, particularly in defence, with Younes Kaboul and Sebastian Prodl out injured and Miguel Britos suspended.
"Britos was important because Kaboul and Prodl were injured and we do not have a defence now," said manager Walter Mazzarri.
"We had one of the best games since I have been here on Tuesday [in the 2-0 win over West Brom], where the players played the way I like and I would have liked to have been able to play against Tottenham with a full team."
Espanyol loan goalkeeper Pau Lopez could make his Tottenham debut if Hugo Lloris fails to shake off a virus and Michel Vorm cannot recover from knee trouble.
Victor Wanyama (back) will be assessed while Danny Rose (knee) is not yet ready to return and Harry Winks and Erik Lamela are out for the season.
Watford will be forced into changes as Kaboul has a hamstring injury, Prodl is recovering from a rib injury and Britos is suspended.
Defender Christian Kabasele is back in contention after he returned to training following two months out with a hip problem.
Striker Troy Deeney and midfielders Tom Cleverley and Abdoulaye Doucoure are all "very fatigued", according to Mazzarri, while Etienne Capoue, Valon Behrami and goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes are also doubts.
Roberto Pereyra (knee), Mauro Zarate (anterior cruciate ligament) and Ben Watson (groin strain) are all long-term absentees.
Tottenham have never lost in the Premier League against Watford, winning five of seven encounters (D2).
Watford have lost their last six league visits to White Hart Lane since beating them 5-1 in May 1985.
Dele Alli scored twice against Watford at Vicarage Road in January in a 4-1 win and assisted the winner in this fixture last season for Kieran Trippier.
Spurs are unbeaten in 15 successive league home games (W13 D2 L0); their best run in league competition since May 2011 (17 games).
Tottenham have four home games remaining in the Premier League this season (including this game). Only 13 teams have previously gone a whole Premier League season unbeaten at home, with Chelsea in 2014-15 being the last.
Pochettino's side have scored in every one of their last 23 Premier League matches at White Hart Lane - a run that stretches back to January 16th 2016.
Deeney has scored against 41 different teams during his Watford career, but has never scored in four appearances against Spurs for the Hornets.
Tottenham had a great result at Swansea after being 1-0 down so late on. They can close the gap on Chelsea in the next couple of weeks and can put the pressure on again with a win on Saturday afternoon.
Watford got a great win in midweek over West Brom, but this should be comfortable for Tottenham.
Paul predicts: 3-0 (6/1 with Sky Bet)
Pochettino's men remain 8/1 shots to win the Premier League following their comeback at Swansea, while the Hornets are 40/1 to face relegation following back-to-back victories.
The bookmakers struggle to pick a first goalscorer favourite in Harry Kane's continued absence, with Alli, Heung-Min Son and Vincent Janssen all 3/1 to break the deadlock, while Deeney is considered the visitors' main threat at 12/1 to net first.
